The American Indian in the United States, Period 1850-1914: ... The Present Condition of the American Indian; His Political History and Other Topics; A Plea for JusticeMoorehead, Warren K. (Warren King)
History
The American Indian in the United States, Period 1850-1914: ... The Present Condition of the American Indian; His Political History and Other Topics; A Plea for Justice
Moorehead, Warren K. (Warren King)
Indians of North America; Indians of North America -- Government relations -- 1869-1934
“A few of the soldiers camped near the scene of the attack had joined in
the pursuit at the beginning, on the representations of some of the
murderers, but abandoned it as soon as they found their mistake.
According to all the testimony, the killing was a wanton, unprovoked,
and deliberate murder, yet the criminals were acquitted in the local
courts. The apathy displayed by the authorities of Meade county, South
Dakota, in which the murder was committed, called forth some vigorous
protests. Colonel Shatter, in his statement of the case, concludes,
referring to the recent killing of Lieutenant Casey: ‘So long as Indians
are being arrested and held for killing armed men under conditions of
war, it seems to me that the white murderers of a part of a band of
peaceful Indians should not be permitted to escape punishment.’ The
Indians took the same view of the case, and when General Miles demanded
of Young-man-afraid-of-his-horses the surrender of the slayers of Casey
and the herder Miller, the old chief indignantly replied: ‘No; I will
not surrender them, but if you will bring the white men who killed Few
Tails, I will bring the Indians who killed the white soldier and the
herder; and right out here in front of your tipi I will have my young
men shoot the Indians and you have your soldiers shoot the white men,
and we will be done with the whole business.”
“In regard to the heroic conduct of One Feather, the officer then in
charge of the agency says: ‘The determination and genuine courage, as
well as the generalship he manifested in keeping at a distance the six
men who were pursuing him, and the devotion he showed toward his family,
risking his life against great odds, designate him as entitled to a
place on the list of heroes’.”
[Illustration:
“This monument is erected by surviving relatives and other Oglala and
Cheyenne River Sioux Indians in memory of the Chief Big Foot
Massacre, Dec. 29, 1890.
“Col. Forsythe in command of V. S. Troops.
“Big Foot was a great Chief of the Sioux Indians. He often said ‘I
will stand in peace till my last day comes.’ He did many good and
brave deeds for the White man and the Redman.
“Many innocent women and children who knew no wrong, died here.
“The erection of this monument is largely due to the financial
assistance of Joseph Horncloud, whose father was killed here.”
* * * * *
This was paid for, and put up by Indians—not white people.
]
I present as an illustration in this book, the little monument erected
on the Wounded Knee battlefield by the Sioux themselves some years after
the massacre. It was dedicated in the presence of a great concourse of
Indians. The inscription is given in Sioux on one side of the shaft, in
English on the other. The War Department rather objected to it, so I was
told, but it still stands as a monument typifying our treatment of the
Indian in these modern days.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account